Monção
Municipality in Norte, Portugal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Monção (Portuguese pronunciation: [mõˈsɐ̃w] ⓘ) is a town and municipality in the Alto Minho subregion of Portugal. It is situated on the southern bank of the Minho River, which serves as the natural border between Portugal and Spain. Directly across the river lies the Spanish town of Salvaterra de Miño, with which it forms the Monção–Salvaterra de Miño Eurocity. The population in 2011 was 19,230,[1] in an area of 211.31 km2.[2] The current mayor is the Social Democrat António Barbosa. The municipal holiday is March 12.
Monção | |
|---|---|
Municipality | |
| |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Interactive map of Monção | |
| Country | Portugal |
| Region | Norte |
| Subregion | Alto Minho |
| District | Viana do Castelo |
| Municipal charter | March 12, 1261 |
| Parishes | 24 |
| Government | |
| • Body | Câmara Municipal de Monção |
| • Mayor | António Barbosa (PPD/PSD) |
| Area | |
| • Land | 211.31 km2 (81.59 sq mi) |
| Population (2011) | |
• Total | 19,230 |
| Demonym | monçanense |
| Postal code | 4950 |
| Municipal holiday | March 12 |
| Website | www |
Etymology
According to the linguist José Pedro Machado, the name Monção comes from the Latin montianus, which means mountainous, or of the mountain.
However, according to other authors, such as C. Clark and Dorothy Quillinan, the name comes from the medieval Latin name Mons Sanctum, meaning “Holy Mountain,” which in turn would have been a translation of the settlement’s ancient name, Orosion, which would have been used by the Greeks and later by the Suebi.
Until January 1935, Monção was also spelt as Monsão.
In neighbouring Spain, amongst older generations, Monção is known as Monzón, reflecting a direct translation of the Portuguese word monção, which also means “monsoon.”
Geography
Climate
Monção has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Köppen: Csa) with mild, rainy winters and hot dry summers. Although short, the summer season is dry enough to avoid being classified has a humid subtropical climate or an oceanic climate like nearby Vigo.
| Climate data for Monção (Valinha), 1991-2020 normals and extremes 1971-2020 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 23.8 (74.8) |
26.8 (80.2) |
30.1 (86.2) |
33.2 (91.8) |
36.4 (97.5) |
40.9 (105.6) |
42.0 (107.6) |
41.9 (107.4) |
39.9 (103.8) |
36.0 (96.8) |
26.0 (78.8) |
25.6 (78.1) |
42.0 (107.6) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 13.5 (56.3) |
15.4 (59.7) |
18.5 (65.3) |
20.1 (68.2) |
23.2 (73.8) |
26.7 (80.1) |
29.9 (85.8) |
30.2 (86.4) |
27.2 (81.0) |
21.8 (71.2) |
16.3 (61.3) |
13.8 (56.8) |
21.4 (70.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 9.2 (48.6) |
10.1 (50.2) |
12.9 (55.2) |
14.3 (57.7) |
17.1 (62.8) |
20.1 (68.2) |
22.6 (72.7) |
22.8 (73.0) |
20.5 (68.9) |
16.7 (62.1) |
12.1 (53.8) |
9.8 (49.6) |
15.7 (60.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 5.0 (41.0) |
4.9 (40.8) |
7.2 (45.0) |
8.6 (47.5) |
11.0 (51.8) |
13.6 (56.5) |
15.4 (59.7) |
15.4 (59.7) |
13.8 (56.8) |
11.5 (52.7) |
7.8 (46.0) |
5.8 (42.4) |
10.0 (50.0) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −5.2 (22.6) |
−3.0 (26.6) |
−5.1 (22.8) |
−2.0 (28.4) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
3.8 (38.8) |
7.1 (44.8) |
7.0 (44.6) |
4.0 (39.2) |
1.0 (33.8) |
−1.5 (29.3) |
−3.4 (25.9) |
−5.2 (22.6) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 142.8 (5.62) |
99.5 (3.92) |
105.2 (4.14) |
109.4 (4.31) |
93.2 (3.67) |
42.8 (1.69) |
22.2 (0.87) |
27.6 (1.09) |
67.4 (2.65) |
160.8 (6.33) |
157.1 (6.19) |
154.2 (6.07) |
1,182.2 (46.54) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 1 mm) | 12.6 | 10.2 | 10.3 | 11.9 | 10.9 | 5.7 | 3.5 | 4.1 | 6.4 | 11.7 | 12.8 | 12.4 | 112.5 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 98 | 105 | 151 | 168 | 196 | 240 | 282 | 265 | 207 | 148 | 118 | 85 | 2,063 |
| Source 1: Instituto de Meteorologia[3][4] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: Portuguese Environment Agency (for sunshine 1967-1990)[5] | |||||||||||||
Administration
Administrative subdivisions
Administratively, the municipality is divided into 24 civil parishes (freguesias):[6]
- Abedim
- Anhões e Luzio
- Barbeita
- Barroças e Taias
- Bela
- Cambeses
- Ceivães e Badim
- Lara
- Longos Vales
- Mazedo e Cortes
- Merufe
- Messegães, Valadares e Sá
- Monção e Troviscoso
- Moreira
- Pias
- Pinheiros
- Podame
- Portela
- Riba de Mouro
- Sago, Lordelo e Parada
- Segude
- Tangil
- Troporiz e Lapela
- Trute
Demographics
| Population of Monção Municipality (1801–2011) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1801 | 1849 | 1900 | 1930 | 1960 | 1981 | 1991 | 2001 | 2011 |
| 12,095 | 14,983 | 26,077 | 24,585 | 27,393 | 23,799 | 21,799 | 19,956 | 19,230 |
Notable people
- Joaquim Pereira Pimenta de Castro (1846–1918), a Portuguese army officer and politician
- José Gomes Temporão (born 1951), a Brazilian doctor and Minister of Health of Brazil, from 2007 to 2010.
- Fernando Vilar (born 1954), a Uruguayan journalist and news anchor.
See also
- Vinho Verde, a wine variety common to the Alto Minho
- Brejoeira Palace
- Mercy Charitys's Church of Valadares
- Longos Vales's Monastery
- Castelo de Monção
